Tuesday, April 25, 2017

Digis on the 5s release: Tree Peony

I’ve been wanting to release an image of this plant since we very first started Power Poppy, but here we are in our third year and it seems that now is the perfect time. Folks are getting so into coloring large flowers it seems, and this one is large and in charge! In fact, its blooms can be up to 8" across. Acres of petalage, gorgeously cut foliage, and the prettiest shades of color you’ve ever seen. What is this plant? Check out the image above that I painted for the gardening catalog I designed back in 1995 for my dear clients, Klehm Nursery (now named Klehm’s Song Sparrow Farm and Nursery). It’s the Tree Peony, the most exquisite and rare of all peonies (in my opinion!)

The woody cousin of herbaceous peonies, Tree Peonies have much larger blooms, more exotic coloration, and dazzling frilly centers. The foliage is quite striking in itself, and is a lighter green than regular peonies. They grow to become large shrubs and make a huge statement wherever they are planted. Take a look at a few wonderful cultivars from the collection at Klehm’s Song Sparrow:

Aren’t those MAGNIFICENT?? Even just looking at the photos, I feel a bit faint. They have a pretty good collection of them in the Chinese Garden at the Missouri Botanical Garden, which I’ve photographed quite a few times, and will be sharing photos on my Instagram for coloring inspiration! I also have a large one in my garden which only gave me four blooms this year (sigh, not in enough sun for it’s liking). In the meantime, let’s get to the new stamp set....

Say hello to our newest downloadable digital set: Tree Peony! It comes with one swoopy birthday sentiment that you can color in to match the flower.

I’m releasing this today, just a few days ahead of what would have been my mother’s 73rd birthday. She had a few plants that she treasured above all else, and we all know that one of those plants was Daffodils. The other: Tree Peonies! I am sure you can see why, they are rare, exquisite, and totally awe-inspiring.

Today we have two designers showing off this lovely new design, don’t you want to see what they’ve created to inspire you? Let’s go see their cards using Tree Peony:

Enjoy your day, and I’m going to try to color this one up to share here, posted a bit later... I started to color but my sweet Douglas had been out of town for 5 days and he got home earlier than expected — as if I’m going to color when I can be squeezing on that man! But today is a new day!! I hope you enjoy this one, I think it’s got a LOT of possibilities!

ADDENDUM: I was able to sit outside and paint this morning for a few hours, and here’s my contribution to the garden of Tree Peonies....

Such a beautiful flower and lovely digi set. I think it is wonderful that you did this in honor of your Mother. I am sure you miss her very much and especially during her Birthday. I will be praying that the Lord's strength sustains you during that time.

Your colored peonies are beautiful.thanks for sharing the pictures of thereal flowers. I had a bed of peoniesat our old house. Had quite a few different colors and enjoyed their beauty. When we moved I had to give them up - really miss seeingthem every year.thanks for sharing.

Yes, the tree peonies are truly magnificent, and your painting is stunning! Why haven't I not known about this beautiful flower until now! I'm learning so much from you, so thank you for sharing your love and knowledge of nature. What a wonderful tribute this for your mother.

Such a beautiful flower Marcella. I love your coloring. It's very realistic. Love the pics you have shared. I've never know about tree peonies till now. I like that you include lots of pics of the flower and more details about it in your posts.